Grey Skies and Troubled Waters
by shadowcaster01
Summary: To ease rising tensions amongst various wizarding governments, the ICW decided to hold an international competition, to be hosted by the famous Hogwarts school. The ICW hopes that this will keep focus away from the mounting problems behind ministry doors...
1. Chapter 1

_Hi there!_

_While I think of new angles for my other stories, I thought I'd start one of a different sort. _

_I'll give you the prologue first, then my explanation at the end. So, I hope this intrigues you…._

…

**New murder escalates international tensions!**

By Padma Pavarti

Just last night, Jonas Bradley, American Minister for Magic and Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, was found dead in his office after finishing negotiations on a new treaty changing the international standard on various magical practices. (See page 5 for more information on the treaty.)

Aurors were mystified when they discovered the minister lying spread eagled on the floor with a look of sheer terror on his face, along with strange scarring on his hands and feet. No traces of magic could be detected from the area, leaving even more questions pertaining to the nature of the attack.

The American wizarding government was outraged at the news, placing the blame at the feet of both the Chinese and French ministries, who they have had a straining relationship with over the past few years. The American ministry has been doubtful of whether China and France could be trusted, especially since the attacks from Chinese renegades a few years ago. Rumors of French sabotage have also brought unease to American officials, who have been avoiding French dignitaries for the past three months since the rumor first spread.

To keep tensions between the three nations at a minimum, the meeting of the ICW was held in London for the first time in the past ten years, instead of the American ministry, which had been customary since Bradley's appointment as Supreme Mugwump.

Our Minister for Magic, Hermione Granger, argued that if the ICW was held at a neutral meeting place, tensions could be eased somewhat. London was the final choice after a long debate by several foreign ministers, and will also be the temporary place of council until the issue of the new head of the ICW could be resolved.

The Undersecretary of the American ministry, Andrea Hart, gave the prophet her statement regarding these events.

"This killing was a low blow to our government, considering all of the great ideas our minister had for the wizarding world. Whoever did this will certainly receive retribution from the American people. The folks back home agree that this is definitely something to fight for."

When asked about who she thought was behind the murder, Hart refused to comment, saying "I'm sure you all know who some of my people think did this; it's not my place to put my own personal opinion out there regarding such a delicate matter. Our main concern is for the re-election of our minister before anything else can be done."

Hart declined to answer any more questions, instead taking the next available portkey to Washington along with her fellow dignitaries. A handful of their officials remain here in London to help patch things up before they, too, return home.

The American accusations had left both China and France incensed. Both ministers refused to comment, claiming that they had more important issues to deal with rather than answering questions.

Aurors are continuing to look into the case, hopeful that there may be some lead to the killer. The prophet was able to approach the Head Auror, the famous Harry Potter, who assures citizens that his team will do all they can to solve the mystery. For now, the events of last night have left many wondering: who did this, and why?

…**..**

_Sorry that it's so short, but I thought it would be best to give you guys a taste of what the plot of this story could be like. This is only part of it, though… If I find that people are interested by this prologue, I'll add onto it later on._

_And now, for my explanation I promised you…_

_It all started when I was browsing the HP fiction and found a few stories that caught my eye – I'd never really considered reading the "insert your OCs here" type before, and it intrigued me. This is why I'm here. If anybody has seen the one written by canadiandonutsarethesexiest, I decided to pick up the abandoned story and see what I could do with it. I would be using the character suggested in the reviews from that story to form my plot, which will be of a different genre. If it flops, then it wasn't meant to be. I guess you could say that this is a bit of an experiment…_

_**Edit: **__this will no longer be based on the OC storyline I've mentioned above, since it no longer exists. It may take a while for me to post a new chapter for it though, so if this interests you, keep an eye out for it…_

_Thank you for your attention,_

_Shadowcaster01_


	2. Chapter 2

Harry Potter entered his office in the Auror Department and was bombarded with a crowd of people trying to get his comments for the incident.

"I'm sorry, but we can give no further information about it just yet. Don't worry, though, we have our best witches and wizards already on the case." Harry blinked when a few cameras flashed. "Just know that we _will_ get to the bottom of this."

_Hey guys, _

_Sorry that this isn't a real update._

_When I first posted this, I had a clear idea of what the plot was going to be. I still do, although I'm a little stuck when it comes to characters during this time frame. Harry and co from Canon are no problem, but the next gen cast always leave me scratching my head. There's really no true depiction for them apart from basic appearances, and even then most of the new generation were only mentioned by name. So, until I can come up with the best portrayal for them, and during as well, I've decided to ask you readers out there to provide me with some characters to use for the story. _

_Basically, as you've no doubt read from the summary, I'm hosting an international event including the three schools we already know about along with many others. The geographical areas I'm having these schools put in (in terms of continents) are: Africa, South America, North America, Asia, and the Pacific. So far I have the Dreamtime Institute of Magic (Australia, New Zealand, etc), but apart from that I'm open to suggestions._

_I will only accept applications through PM; anything sent via review will not be accepted. Please include anything you deem important for your character - and I mean_ important, _I'd rather not be swamped with irrelevant stuff like wand size or core, or how many times they charm their hair multiple colors, or their rivals' names (unless it's greatly affecting their daily life), exact height and weight (a general idea compared to others is fine - like at or above average, petite, extremely tall, etc), or even bust size (heard of that happening). Just the main parts, thanks.__ Flaws would be useful too - real ones, please. I want them as human as they can possibly be._

_I'll be editing this chapter when I have the real one ready to replace this with. I hope I haven't offended anyone with that last paragraph. Anyway, sorry to anyone who was hoping for more story - hopefully I'll have the next part up soon. Thanks for your time and patience. _

_(edit: there's a guide form on my profile if you need it)_

_So, until next time, peace out!_

_Shadowcaster01_


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